Burn In

Friday's fitting went well and I was able to bring my new Moots home. Friday evening I took it out for a short 20 mile ride. The ride was both exciting and uneventful - everything you'd hope for on a maiden voyage. I need to make some personal tweaks to the seat, brakes, and bar ends to get the fully personalized effect. Even with the basics setup the platform is something to behold.

 

29" rim and 2" of rubber is a lot of bicycle tire but handles easily enough. Again, the platform is amazing. The tires and frame alone significantly smooth out the ride. So far the "soft tail" is unnecessary. So far I'm not riding on rutted out jeep roads.  It's a simple suspension system so I still get some pogoing while pedaling. My suboptimal pedal stroke doesn't help.  For now I'll keep the front and rear locked out.  The front lockout is uber convenient - turn a dial atop the right fork 180 degrees. The rear lockout involves an allen wrench on the lockout collar.

Friday also brought new frame bags.  Everything is coming together nicely.  The frame bag looked huge. It actually was a bit large for the bike.  Kudos to Eric at Relevate Designs for a really great design.  With the frame bag being a bit long I can dimple it in and still use the included straps to keep it astraddle of the frame tubes. And did I mention they are huge?  I swear the rear saddle bag would hold a gallon jug of milk.  Americans can appreciate that. Others may be confounded.

Rebecca, aka wonder wife (credits to Howard Turner for exposing me to this apropos terminology), is also looking for miles in the saddle.  We agreed on a Saturday morning ride to the northern terminus of the ATT for breakfast at Starbucks.  It took a bit to get out the door with all of the newness: new bike, new bags, new water bottle holders, shuffling necessities over to the new containers.  The new stuff will work out, I will get more efficient, but for now it just takes time to migrate and acclimate.  We rode for an hour with a brief stop at the Durham Farmers Market and arrived at breakfast, err brunch.  Small b, mostly unch.

We both marvel at the size of the Moots. It's like the SUV of bicycles.  This photo gives a little insight.  The Moots rear axle is roughly aligned with her Trek front axle.  The Moots front axle roughly aligns with back of the Trek back tire.  It's a beast.  However, it still handles well.  And like an SUV it has a nice cozy cockpit.



After breakfast we headed southbound stopping by the farmers market again.  Our bRUNCH meant we missed the noon closing of the market.


I dropped Rebecca off at home after 25 miles.  She is saving up for an 18 mile run on Sunday.  The stop afforded me time to make a few more small adjustments and load up.  I need to acclimate to the bike but I also really need miles.  It's also a bit of a test. When I got my Tricross a couple years ago my first ride covered the entire southern ATT.  The Tricross was my first attempt at all day comfort.  The Moots is supposed to be an all day and night cruiser. Proof is in the pudding.

I was underwhelmed with REI's version of e-vent jacket.  It lacked any vents other than what the fabric is supposed to inherently provide.  A short twenty minute ride dissuaded me of its efficacy.  It's a real shame because the cut of the jacket was perfect for me.  The sleeves actually reach my wrists and stayed there.  I have my eye on a Showers Pass e-vent jacket that also includes pockets and arm pit vents.  Unfortunately they don't fit as well as the REI.  That leaves me with a dilemma that I have to resolve.  REI with no vents at $100, Showers Pass with poor fit at $250, or just use my $35 L.L. Bean PVC-esque jacket that keeps me warm and dry from rain but sweaty on the inside.  That's a question for another day. For now it's forecast for 60's and sun today!

After REI I decided on a real test for the Moots.  I bee-lined over to the unfinished terminus of ATT south near Southpoint.  This is a real mud fest currently.  Mud is a reality for my event. There is some concern about mud caking on the frame with some versions of the Moots. Time to find out.

I dropped into the trail and immediately sank multiple inches into mud.  I kept pedaling and the Moots kept clawing. Through repeat instances of deep mud I never heard the grinding of tire mud on frame. Positive first test and I will continue looking for more evidence. I had a bit of trouble focusing on this as I was distracted by the performance of the WTB Nano Rapter tires in the mud.  Sure, they slid around some.  However, as long as I pedaled they paddled me forward.  The weight balance on the front and rear tires also seems positive as I never fully sunk the front tire for potential endo. The two inches of rubber and four inches of 29" wheels were christened with mud before I found terra firma. It was muddy and I was happy.

Sloshing through more water and mud I eventually found solid trail and hammered southbound.  For anyone who read Monday's post here is normal not-so-inviting view of the tunnel under highway 64:



And here are the lowlands that made such a great fog bank on Monday night.  East Side:




West Side:



And here is a more typical visage of the ATT Southern terminus. My Monday night dinner spot for one was narrow-parking-room-only on Saturday afternoon.



Google shows a connector from the ATT to Ragan Road.  In person it was particularly muddy.  I wanted more mud testing and I wanted to know if I could connect to Ragan Road.  I sank the moots in mud again and again it performed beautifully.  I climbed a short rise riding in mud and water most of the way up.  My interest was already waning. As I crested the rise I found the trail passed behind an animal pen.  Rain washed animal dung out of the pen and across the trail.  I don't mind mud but this is something else.  I finished up my mudding by heading back down to the trail.

Back on the trail I stopped for another handlebar adjustment. I rolled the ergon grips forward, forward, and more forward until my hand position caused my hand to tingle. Then I rolled them back just a smidgen.  I think they are actually uneven with the right rolled further forward than the left.  It turns out humans are rarely actually symmetrical.  Get over the vanity, accept it, and things get much more comfortable.  Back on solid ground again and headed north you can see some of the slop that collected on my shoes and legs.



Heading north also means heading up hill.  I was getting low due to another round of poor nutrition.  My legs were also burning from learning the geometry of the new bike.  All this means more pictures.  Here is another more typical view of the ATT to contrast with Monday night.  Note the cyclists in the distance.



This is the section of trail where I took the three pictures on Monday night.  These came out much better.



Sorry to restate the obvious but isn't that just gorgeous?  You should have been there, it was even better in person.



Northbound I dialed it back out of self preservation.  Slower pace is also great for catching up on phone calls. Thanks to Waylon for tolerating wind noise, gravel noise, and who knows what else came through the microphone. It was great to have company in spirit even if not in person.

My quads burned all the way northbound.  I wasn't looking forward to the treacherous muddy climb at the very end of the trail so I bailed off the unfinished section of the trail into a subdivision. I was delighted to find the subdivisions are finally connected so I was able to ride on neighborhood streets all the way to the intersection of Renaissance Parkway and 751 where I could pick up sidewalks for crossing I-40.  I wheeled through the under-constructions indifferent about the paving joints.  29" tires and the front shock ate them up.  Even after 60 miles in the new saddle the ledges were little more than undulations when the 29" tires, front fork, and Moots titanium frame were done with them.

I broke in the Tricross carbon frame on the ATT south side and have been pleased with the bike ever since.  Today I broke in the Moots Titanium frame with a geometry that is completely new to me with both the North and South sides of the ATT. The future's looking bright.

Here's my new bike when all was said and done.  Wonder Wife says I have to wash the water bottles off outside before bringing them into the house.  I'm surprised I was allowed in the house.



Gotta wrap this up with bow and get ready for the next undertaking so:

• The frame, fork, tires, handlebars, and bar ends are wonderful.  It was all sight unseen.  I was optimistic. Optimism payed off.
• The frame bags are good. The trunk bag is great.  The frame bag is a little large.  The next size down would be too small.  It interferes with tall insulated bottles I like to use.  I need to work on this more. I keep searching for a triangular water reservoir to mount in the normal water bottle mount points and sit nice and low on the frame.  I wore my large camel back today. I am thinking of using a backpack for convenience items and light odds and ends.  It will also be extra water for long desolate stretches. More work is required in the hydration department.
• I felt some tingling and stress in my hands and shoulders today.  This is somewhat expected when changing bike geometry so much.  I will grow into this some.  I experimented riding with elbows on the handle bars.  I still want aero bars. I am optimistic they will fit and integrate well.  Experiments today are positive.  Getting closer to aero will reduce my wind drag and allow me to use hamstrings and glutes more.
• I find it difficult to engage my hamstrings and glutes on this geometry.  I need to research this a bit more. My body and mind tell me to move my seat back.  Doing so would put more pressure on my hands. I am taking this slow for now as it is tolerable and more breakin is required. There are just too many variables in flight:
• The brooks saddle is still new and pushing me forward.  I exert my hands, arms, and quads pushing myself back on the seat. This will diminish as the seat breaks in.
• The bike geometry is different. I need to be a bit more upright.  My cross and road bikes push me forward so that pressure on my wrists is untenable for more than ~ 100 miles and even then they are tender the next day.  I'm looking for 120-150 miles a day consistently out of this platform.
• I am still adjusting the handlebars.  They swoop in one direction.  I need to get that swoop dialed in to me.  The ergon bar ends are great but they also need to get dialed in.  Brakes and shifters also play a role here in supporting a neutral hand position.

All in all a great first two outings.  20 miles Friday night and 63 miles on Saturday. That's a good start.

Garmin Connect Statistics

Gut Check

Ever have doubts?  Ever question your motives?  Ever question your abilities?  Ever doubt your resolve?  I do.

This morning was a doubting morning. I couldn't imagine why I would commit something so insane.  How? Why?

This is a death spiral that can stick me circling the drain.  As reeled into concentric circles I latched onto one saving inspiration.  I rose from restless tossing last night to watch the 49ers lose to the Giants.  I was 0 for 2 in pulling for both the Ravens and 49ers.  I gave into my midnight cravings at 10PM and enjoyed a bowl of peanut butter and jelly, 2 slices of bread, and a tumbler of soy milk.  Yum at the time but certainly indulgent.  This morning knowledge of that indulgence pushed me onto the bike and out the door.  Cold and wet be damned.  When I arrived at work clarity and motivation were restored.  Ahh the miracle of endorphins.

I jettisoned from the office about 30 minutes early following a subconscious decision.  I say subconscious because a reasonable sane person would know better.  It gets dark around 6PM now.  Autopilot on my handlebars and pedals set me on the path to a ~38 mile journey in spite of the threat rain, darkness, and cold.  My eyes were just along for the ride.

I stopped for my first desolate solitary meal at the southern end of the American Tobacco Trail.  I found shelter under the outhouse overhang.  Just me, bike lights, a pack of cliff shots, an empty parking lot, falling darkness and misting rain.  Desolate dinner table for one.

The real adventure began as I started back. Darkness fell accompanied by its friends dense fog and heavier rain.  The approximately eighteen mile journey home would be interesting.  I had to get through the fog, darkness, and cold to contend with a one mile stretch of mall traffic to reach the safety of the trail that leads another three miles to neighborhood surface streets that would, if luck held, spit me out of the spitting rain at home.

I would normally say the fog set in.  In this case it more like belly flopped an impenetrable blanket over the world.  With two 2 watt lights on my handlebars and a 1 watt helmet light I could see about three feet.  I found myself following vague tire prints of previous cyclists.  I read several anecdotes of similar behavior in Tour Divide stories.  Now I know why.  The vague impression of another cyclist is like a yellow brick road.  If only it were more reflective...

It can't really be that foggy can it?  Judge for yourself.  This is what my iPhone saw:



This is looking forward from atop my handlebar lights.  That cream/khaki fuzziness is the ground.




This is another attempt to take a picture of the ground.  It's more like a picture of pea soup.





The head lights are clearly visible because they are four inches from the camera lens.

Speaking of lenses they were useless. I already traded from my sport glasses to my clear glasses.  The heavy moisture in the air coated the lenses obstructing vision even more.  I opted for bare eyeballs and mother nature's windshield wipers.  I could only see about three feet anyway.  Within that three feet everything was fuzzy anyway.  I couldn't see further if I wanted to.  I couldn't make out details if I wanted to.  I was following the vague impression of prior tire tracks.

Finding road crossings were interesting.  Most were gated.  Fortunately the gates had reflectors.  I could see ghostly impressions of the reflectors from about ten feet away just in time to slow down even more and navigate to the narrow passage ways offset to either side.

My pace slowed by necessity.  I've ridden this trail dozens of times.  It all looks different when only three feet of trail are visible.  The world got small, very small, quiet literally.

Eventually I found the tunnel under highway 64.  In the daytime the tunnel seems dark and wet.  In these conditions the tunnel was a viable bed and breakfast.

The rain picked up some.  The drops seemed to drag the fog down to the ground.  The foggy mist tagged out for falling drops.  The drops danced around in numerous directions in the light beams just inches in front of me.

I escaped the extreme low land of the trail with a long and gradual climb.  Love those railroad paths.  I found the paved section of the trail.  The pavement was extremely slick presenting yet another challenge.  Slow and steady I made my way north.  North is good but presents other challenges. The end of the trail coming northbound is unfinished.  My options were foggy low visibility roads or foggy low visibility unfinished trail.  I opted for the trail.

The last mile of trail was very interesting. It made me long for the new bike.  The narrow cyclocross tires sunk and slipped in the mud.  The rigid frame bounced me over roots.  The cyclocross/road gears were just too high for slow crawling through treacherous terrain.  With luck, patience, and every bit of bike handling skill I reached the end of the trail and the dirt/grass embankment.  It was quite the sloppy mess.  This was fun inching process of stepping up, pushing the bike up, locking the brakes, and precariously propelling myself by a combination of the one or two steady or semi steady feet while pulling intermittently on the bike striking a balance of getting me up and it not too far back.  It was quite the muddy calculus.  Even Mrs. Dovers would have been proud.

I crested the bank, rolled the bike through tall grass to clean the rims and avoid rim brake scrubbing, collected my wits and mounted up.  Now to deal with mall traffic.

Infallibly people near the mall don't know how to drive.  Cross walks mean nothing. Flashing strobe lights might as well be sale signs instead of personal safety devices.  Oh, and drivers of new cars cannot find their own headlights.  One lady was quite entertained by me standing in the rain on a bike reminding her to turn her lights on.

Through the mile of modern mall madness I found desolate streets of a started but incomplete development.  This comes with its own perils of missing pavement and huge lips, though ledges may be more accurate, in the road and on the sidewalk.  I navigated this and eventually popped out by highway 54 just across from the paved section of the American Tobacco Trail.  One final uneventful traffic navigation put me on safe, comfortable, uber familiar territory.

I rode up the ATT and passed Rebecca's running group.  The Runbuds are out running in this weather?

Up the trail, onto neighborhood surface streets, and another short mile home.  I was looking forward to reviewing statistics on the ride but my lovely Gamin conveniently forgot this ride.  It's developed this bad habit recently and persisted through soft and hard resets and upgrades.  Another item for the todo list.

I stared around 4:30PM and arrived home around 8PM.  On a good day I can do this ride in 2.5 hours.  Definitely slower but concurrently, definite perseverance.

Inside the house my toes were a shade of stark white or pale blue.  They got wet and cold in the muddy ascent.  It took a shower and time in warm socks to get back to a tender pink color.  I need this to be better.  There may not be warm lodging on the trail at night.

It was a good gut check.  Visibility made  a familiar trail seem foreign.  My world reduced to three short feed in front of me.  I ate, drank, and pedaled in miserable weather.  Navigation is the only missing variable.  I look forward to integrating that, rinsing, and repeating.

Speaking of rinsing, I rinsed with the waterhose when I finally reached home.  That finally managed to soak through my cycling pants.  These do soak through when subjected to enough water.  I'm tying to decide if I need to reinforce dry layers here or grin and bear it.

What an adventure for Monday night.  What ever will Tuesday bring?

Update: I found the garmin record of my workout.  Long story but here it is: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/144169871  .  You can see my pace drop off when visibility falls.  Then it gets very low on the unfinished trail.

Orders Away!

I knew I would get exercise but I had no idea my credit card would too.  Orders abound but that's also progress:

• I decided to keep sale price e-vent jacket and pair it with after market rain hood.  This should help with moisture and warmth.  Rain hood is on order.
• Dog experience this week reminded me of need for dog mace. On order
• I pulled the trigger on trunk bag, tangle bag, and handlebar bag from relevate designs.  On order.
• I'm awaiting confirmation on sizes for full triangle frame bags before ordering that.
• Memory for my mac so I can work faster to bike more. On order.

The CC company called today to confirm I haven't lost my mind, or my card. I'm taking pride in that at the moment.  Though it adds another item to the todo list. I have to get everything setup for a proxy while I am indisposed on the trail.

I logged 31 miles in the rain yesterday.  The trip home was less exciting than the trip out.  I had a few critter encounters including deer and cats.  I've heard, and continue to believe, that seeing deer is good luck.  I've learned that cats are dumb. They lay in the road and stare at me approaching on bicycle. I have to steer around them or they will lay there and become road kill.

Oh, and dogs.  I discovered a cyclist's dilemma.  Riding with strobe lights is best practice to be seen by motorists.  You can tell if strobes are working by dog responses.  Strobes drive dogs crazy.  It's like red meat with a side of cat fur. They give bark and chase and generally go ape shit.  I've ridden by the same dogs with and without strobes.  The strobe riles even the most disciplined side kick.